Active Media is the creation of CEO Richard Hall, who founded the company after many years in the adult VHS and DVD distribution sector. Hall entered the adult industry in 2004 when he found himself feeling unfulfilled in his job with the Better Business Bureau. A door-to-door job search led him to a warehouse position at All Adult Video, where he worked under industry veteran Greg Poland, distributing beta and VHS tapes. Hall soon transitioned to the DVD world in 2005 with the company DVD Concepts/Critical X.
When porn sales began to slump, Hall opened Active Media in 2016 as a wholesale distributor offering pills, sex toys and other novelties. Active also sold DVDs, but when those sales slowed to a near halt, Hall discontinued his adult media products and turned his focus to branding his own collection of sexual stimulants — namely, the Golden Cock line of inhalants and a unisex couples pill called Get Hard, Stay Wet. Active Media has since worked to create a name for itself in the industry, attending trade events and following up with retailers to establish a reputation for friendliness and reliability. Its particular area of specialization is “poppers.”
We believe that personal interactions are invaluable in building trust and establishing long-term relationships with our clients.
Named for the sound the small bottles make when opened, these sexual stimulants are vasodilators that help relax muscles and increase blood flow while delivering feelings of euphoria and lowered inhibitions. The effects are instant and last roughly 30-70 seconds. For legal reasons, poppers are marketed as cleaning solvents, an alternative use for the product.
“Active Media strategically chooses to focus on cleaning solvents as the company’s main product line due to the unique opportunities they present in the market,” says sales executive Steven Cox. “Unlike the highly saturated adult pill market, the solvent market offers a niche where distinctive products can stand out. By creating solvents with unique scents and packaging, the company is able to offer something different and appealing to consumers.”
Poppers initially rose to fame in the 1970s during the disco craze and experienced subsequent surges in the club and rave scenes of the 1980s and 1990s. Due to the inhalants’ ability to loosen the muscles in the throat and sphincters within the anal cavity, poppers came to be largely associated with gay men, and have since maintained a presence in the queer community. Though such inhalants should be used with caution and care, the LGBTQ+ experts at GoFreddie.com say that, all things considered, poppers are a relatively safe product as long as they’re not combined with certain prescription medications or used with alcohol or other party drugs.
“As the adult products industry increasingly aligns with health and wellness trends, the perception and use of products traditionally classified as poppers are also evolving,” Cox elaborates. “Active Media focuses on producing a cleaning solvent that emphasizes an aromatic experience rather than a harsh chemical smell. This approach caters to consumers who are mindful of the health implications and sensory experiences of the products they use in their environments.”
Active Media still celebrates the gay and queer roots of poppers with specialty scents and packaging, like the watermelon-scented Pride package, the leather-bound pig on the front of the company’s Hogwater scent package, and the kinky, vest-donning bear that advertises the brand’s leather and tobacco-scented bottles. However, the company aims to broaden the consumer range for inhalants.
“While cleaning solvents have historically had a strong association with the gay male community, this is not the primary target audience for Active Media’s current product line,” says Cox. “Instead of focusing on any one specific demographic, the company is working to create a unisex and female-friendly solvent that can appeal to a broader audience.”
For example, Pink Passion, an inhalant under the Golden Cock line, promises a floral, feminine scent that the company believes will appeal to women and straight couples as well. The company is also heavily promoting its his-and-hers stimulant pill.
“While the pill market is more competitive, Stay Hard Get Wet complements the company’s core offerings, allowing us to cater to a broader range of adult product consumers,” offers Cox.
Perhaps most attractive to retailers is Active Media’s dedication to brick-and-mortar stores. Retail is always a tough business, but physical stores have struggled even more since COVID, so retailers welcome the stability and loyalty of a manufacturer brand that won’t undercut them online.
“This strategic focus on brick-and-mortar stems from challenges in the online retail space, particularly with online merchant services being reluctant to process transactions for our product categories,” explains Cox. “Physical stores provide a more accessible and reliable platform for selling our products, ensuring that transactions are processed smoothly without the complications often encountered online.”
As Active Media moves forward, Cox says, the company is working on several major goals for the next year. These include developing another new couples-and-female-friendly solvent and attending more trade shows.
“That’s a key strategy for us, not just to showcase our innovative products, but also to enhance brand visibility and awareness,” says Cox. “Being present at trade shows allows us to put a face to the name of Active Media.
“We believe that personal interactions are invaluable in building trust and establishing long-term relationships with our clients,” he affirms. “By interacting with our customers and industry peers in person, we can better understand their needs and preferences, which will guide our future product development and marketing strategies.”
Though Cox admits it’s too soon to tell whether inhalants will catch on more broadly, their increasing sales numbers foretell a positive future for this truly niche brand.
“Our current business initiatives are part of our broader effort to continue growing and evolving,” he concludes. “By being responsive to consumer demand and market trends, we can ensure that Active Media remains at the forefront of the adult products industry.”
